Is it hard to box your own lower control arms, me and my friend have an oxy- gas torch and practicing welding right now, thinking about boxing them or would be just easier to buy tubes and make tubular ones. I know that u can buy them from spohn, but it's kind of cool boxing or making your own.

 

Pretty easy to do either one.

I'd start by boxing the stock ones in, you can do that with them on the car. When you get good at what you're doing with the welder then you can make some. It's not the kind of part I'd like to get my welding OJT on.... after all, people can die when it fails (including you).

 

I wouldn't even consider boxing the control arms with an oxy-acetylene torch. Its not going to provide a good, strong bond. '

BTW, it is not hard at all to box the arms. Just cut a piece of steel to fit on the bottom and WELD it in place. You could also make your own arms out of tubular steel. DO NOT try to use your torch to do this. It is only recommended to TIG weld on suspension parts. IF you are planning on using rod ends to attach to the frame and rear then you could make your own because you would not need to weld a sleeve for a bushing.

Basically, I am telling you to NOT use a torch to do any welding. Sure it could work but have you ever been in car when a suspension part broke... you don't want to be

Good luck

 

Could you use a MIG welder to do this. I have one of these but not a TIG welder.

 

MIG welding is okay as long as you are a competent welder. TIG welding is preferred because it allows greater control which can mean a more consistent weld. MIG process is okay though.

 

A torch is for cutting, and a welder is for welding. But hey, that just me.

 

for boxing, a MIG is fine. I just boxed my LCA's and panhard with 1" and 3/4" angle respectively. If I were making something though, I'd definitely TIG weld them.

 

Boy, I'm sure glad I wasn't alive back before TIG welding was invented. Cars, equipment and OH MY GAWD, even big buildings must have been so unsafe! And airplanes! Trains! Boats!



In truth, beginning in the 80s, parts of some cars were made with "high strength steel," which allowed the parts to be the same strength as regular steel, but thinner and lighter. High strength steel will crystalize and fail when heated the way a gas welder does. However, arc welding, MIG welding and TIG welding are all perfectly adequate for boxing your arms or anything else you might want to do. Well, it'd be tough to do bodywork with a plain arc welder, but other than that....

kevin

 

Thanks, yeah it doesn't seem the gas welder is that strong been practicing a little bit. Probably not a good Idea to mess with that part of the suspension.